The Flintstones: Volume Two Review

Finished reading The Flintstones: Volume Two writer Mark Russell concludes the series that revitalised the classic Hanna-Barbera characters who are dealing with modern day problems. The book opens with Gazoo stopping an arriving alien before the Filintstones are chased a way by a group of Marauders as Gazoo begins his report of Earth while the town of Bedrock deal with there sins in how to rid themselves of them at the church. The next story sees Wilma and Betty going to Wilma's old home to see her mother, while Fred and Barry are trying to live without their wife's the towns mayor beings to close down the hospital in hopes to make war with the Lizard people outside of the town. The following story sees Fred getting layoff at work for cheaper labour and when Wilma gives him a new bowling ball which leads to the animals with in the house to go find their friend, the old bowling ball when the armadillo is thrown away. The next story sees the mayor finding out that the Lizard people have moved away leading him to lose the backing of the people of Bedrock while the population is also dealing with the film industry coming to the town. The penultimate story sees Gazoo continuing his report when he's summoned back home while Bedrock is dealing with a large statue of Fred and Barry that Barry got for Fred's birthday. The final story has Gazoo finishing his report as the series comes to an end with Bedrock and its population's story comes to an end. Overall this was an amazing book as it continues to blend together the political and social commentary with some amazing comedic moments exceptionally well. The framing device of most of the story being from a report that Gazoo is writing for his own planet about how he views Earth and the people of Bedrock which helps to give another prospective to the book. Additionally the shift of focus to the nonhuman characters bring a surprisingly amount of development to background characters that could easily be scenery for the book and yet writer Mark Russell makes time to give these characters their own intriguing story. The art by Steve Pugh and Rick Leonardi continues to give to the book a familiar style and aesthetic to classic Flintstones while also feeling modern and updated. 9.5/10.

Batman/The Flash: The Button Deluxe Edition Review

Finished reading Batman/The Flash: The Button Deluxe Edition, writers Tom King and Joshua Williamson team up to continue one of the main mysteries surrounding the DC Universe as Batman and the Flash continue their investigation into the Comedian's button from Watchmen. The book opens with a female Arkham patient going crazy over a hockey game on the television. Meanwhile in the Batcave Batman is taking another look at the Comedian's button before putting it back on the table in fount where it reacts to Psycho Pirate's mask causing Batman to see the Flashpoint version of his father. This leads to Bruce to call the Flash to cone to the cave, however before Barry can get to the cave Reverse Flash shows up and beats Batman in a fight as takes the button for himself only to disappear and reappear within a few moments half disintegrated claiming to have see God which cause Bruce and Barry to try and find out what Thawne saw. Overall this was a brilliant book as it gives some answers to few of the mysteries centring around the DC universe since Rebirth while also creating more intriguing question for what's to come in the future. There's is an amazing amount emotion throughout the book that's to the interactions character have with one another especially the interaction Bruce Wayne and Thomas Wayne from Flashpoint have as it helps to give both characters an amazing amount of development. While the internal monologues from Barry Allen and the surprising appearance of the original Flash, Jay Garrick helps to also give a more personal feel to story and how it deals with each character’s own legacy and mentors. The art throughout the book is amazing as Jason Fabok’s art puts a lot of detail into the fights between the characters as each hits impact is felt. While Howard Porter’s art works extremely well in showcasing the Flash powers while on the Cosmic Treadmill and the more detailed scenes that incorporate multiple references to the largeer DC universe. 10/10.

Geostorm Film Review

Finished watching Geostorm, directed by Dean Devlin and starring Gerard Butler, Jim Sturgess and Alexandra Maria Lara. The film opens with Jake Lawson (Gerard Butler) the inventor of the global satellite weather system going to a summons to a political committee about the system before it becomes a fully international operation and finds himself replaced by his brother Max (Jim Sturgess) as the head of the system. However the weather system soon begins to seemingly malfunction when a town in Afghanistan and its population is frozen in the middle of a desert. This causes Max to go to his brother for help to head to the International Space Station and meet with the stations commander Ute Fassbinder (Alexandra Maria Lara) to begin and investigation. Overall this was a decent film as it has a interesting premise but it's not executed very well as the CGI of the film creates almost zero amount of suspense as the multiple disasters look very unrealistic and cars look like they're driving normally while trying to escape a catastrophe. However what does redeem the film is some fun interactions between characters as their relationships feel realistic enough to understand while the dialogue feels cheesy in places with it bearable enough to find some enjoyment within the film. 6/10.

Batman- Detective Comics: League of Assassins Review

Finished reading Batman- Detective Comics: League of Assassins, continuing with the series as writer James Tynion IV shifts the focus of the book to Cassandra Cain as the book’s villain has strong ties to her history. The book opens with Cassandra copying a ballet dancer before scaring her and heading into the city to so some armed men. Meanwhile Batman is meeting with the mayor of Gotham in hope to work together to stop crime in Gotham. However the mayor is soon found dead by being tied to a wall with multiple swords which turns out to be the work of the League of Shadows lead by Lady Shiva which Batman believes to be a myth only to be proven wrong when the League of Shadows being to attack Gotham. The penultimate story sees Azrael and Batwing bonding over training and discussing about religion and technology. The final story see Tim Drake before he disappeared coming to Batman to ask why he as placed all of his protégées in different parts in the DC universe. Overall this was a great book as writer James Tynion IV makes Cassandra Cain the main character of the story helps to give her some amazing character development and the interactions she has with her mother helps bring some great emotion to the book as well. The continuing inclusion of the Colony is intriguing as their motives and that way the organisation is connected to what Batman and his team have been facing makes their existence more important. The art throughout the book is amazing as every action scene shows how affective each hit is especially with Cassandra’s fighting style as the book also shows the way she sees the weak points in on someone. 8.5/10.

Titans: Made in Manhattan Review

Finished reading Titans: Made in Manhattan, continuing the series feature the former sidekicks of DC’s own superhero’s and their teammates as writer Dan Abnett gives the Titans their own headquarters in New York, however their not the only superhuman team to set up shop in New York. The book opens with Roy, Donna and Wally taking down a giant superhuman when Superman shows up to talk to Wally about feeling out of place with the world. Meanwhile Nightwing, Tempest and Lilith are taking to the teams own attorney to deal with the all the paper work of building Titans Tower in New York City. The book then continues with the Titans making themselves at home in Titans Tower while on the other side of Manhattan Mal Duncan has taken his wife Karen to Meta Solutions, a company that as been set up by a seemingly reformed Fearsome Five to help people with their super powers. However when the Titans get wind of this they being to investigate. The following story written by James Asmus sees the Titans deal with the villainous duo Diablo, who are speeding though the streets of New York during New Year celebrations. The final story sees the Titans teaming up with their mentors in the Justice League when they find themselves trapped within a chamber by the villain the Key. Overall this was a great book as it continues the adventures of the Titans as writer Dan Abnett brings back classic villains the Fearsome Five as well as some plot threads from the Titans Hunt series with the return of Mal and Karen Duncan. The character development of each member continues to be great as Roy Harper and Donna Troy gets a some of the best development thanks to the way their own pasts are effecting the way the make decisions and how it motivates them. While the interactions between the team and even the way the interact with the Justice League later in the book helps to build the relationships each member has with one another and how it compares to the way the Justice League are with one another. The art throughout the book is great as the action is brought to life extremely well which the art also makes time to focus one the emotional moments between characters seem just as impactful thanks the the way the art teams work within the book. 8/10.

The Snowman Film Review

Finished watching The Snowman, directed by Tomas Alfredson and starring Leonard Heinemann, Sofia Helin, Michael Fassbender, Genevieve O'Reilly and Rebecca Ferguson. The film opens with a young boy (Leonard Heinemann) and his mother (Sofia Helin) finding themselves driving on to a frozen lake where the car and the mother sink into the lake while going to meet with the boys father. Years later Detective Harry Hole (Michael Fassbender) is waking up with a hangover in the middle of a park as he heads to work. Later that night teacher Birte Becker (Genevieve O'Reilly) is followed home where she is kidnapped from her home which thrusts Harry and his new work colleague Katrine Bratt (Rebecca Ferguson) into a strange investigation of a killer who's crimes date back years prior. Overall this was a descent film as it dives into the the life and career of Harry Hole by showing how is emotions and family effect and are effected by the film's antagonist. The murder victims are giving a nice about of character intrigue and insight that makes there deaths more impactful to the film and the characters within the film. However what lets the film down is the fact that the film's antagonist gets the least amount of development as their motives are barely explored and once the killer is dealt with the film instantly ending very anticlimactically once the killer has been dealt with. 6/10.

All Star Batman: Ends of the Earth Review

Finished reading All Star Batman: Ends of the Earth, continuing writer Scott Snyder's DC Rebirth Batman series as an array of Batman's villains are given their own spotlight as Batman finds himself on a new case. The book opens with Batman finding himself in the Alaska as Mr Freeze is using a facility he found contains multiple people in cryosleep high Freeze has woken up in hope to find safe way to wake up his beloved Nora. However during the fight between Batman and Freeze a deadly contagion is realised into the atmosphere which cases Batman to try and find a cure which leads him to Poison Ivy who is currently doing some research in the Death Vally, Nevada. However Batman soon finds out the he was followed by a group calling themselves the Blackhawks to Batchaloo swap, Mississippi and a final confrontation with the main villain pulling the strings in Washington D.C. The final story of the book sees Batman's most recent protégée Duke continuing his training as the two heroes find themselves dealing with multiple riddles set up by the Riddler and someone from Duke's past return to cause havoc in his life. Overall is was a great as it sends Batman on and interesting adventure that gives some of his villains a great amount of development while not taking time away from the main overarching storyline. The structure of the book's main story is intriguing with how the book takes a more novel like way in the way the dialog of the book is shown and helps to give the book it's own unique feel. The art of the book is amazing as the changing art teams not only gives each villain their own unique art style but also has similar visuals that makes each part feel connected to each other. 8/10.

Nightwing: Nightwing Must Die Review

Finished reading Nightwing: Nightwing Must Die, continuing writer Tim Seeley’s time with the character, Dick finds his superhero and personal lives clashing with one another. The book opens with Dick and his girlfriend Shawn having a moment when Dick gets notices a call on the police scanner of a robbery. Meanwhile in San Francisco current Robin, Damian Wayne is noticing an online trend that Nightwing is the better Robin and a better candidate to continues Batman's legacy which the Teen Titans agree with. This leads to Damian to head to Blüdhaven to meet with Dick and discuss about the Batman legacy, however things don't go according to plan when Dick gets a call from Shawn thinking that she maybe pregnant which makes Dick race straight to her apartment where he finds out that Shawn has been kidnapped with evidence of Shawn's location with coordinates to France where Dick and Damian find themselves against a familiar foe. The second story of the book sees Wally West, Flash coming to Blüdhaven as Dick and Wally spend some time catching up when they find themselves being robbed in the streets by a criminal using a device that allows him to stop time which leads to Dick and Wally to team up and get the stolen items back. Overall this was a great book as it sees Dick working with Damian Wayne again as the two find themselves fighting against villains from Dick's time as Batman which is paralleled by the reason of Damian being jealous of the fact that people see Dick as a better successor of Batman then himself. There's a great amount of character development within the book as Dick and Shawn's relationship is placed as the main driving force of the book while the addition of Damian help to show how Dick could easily step into the role of a father if he ever had a child, while also give Damian the ability to grow as a character and gives some great interactions with Dick thanks to the two's relationship and the situations they find themselves in. The addition of the team up story of Dick and Wally written by Michael McMillian continues to build Blüdhaven's as a city while also give Dick and Wally time to develop their friendship by dealing with a simple villain the helps to set up future story's as well. The art through of the book is great as Blüdhaven continues to have its own unique aesthetic that separates from other cities in the DC universe while the art team's style continues through the multiple locations that Dick goes to throughout the book. 8.5/10.

Blade Runner 2049 Film Review

Finished watching Blade Runner 2049, directed by Denis Villeneuve and starring Ryan Gosling, Dave Bautista, Robin Wright, Ana de Armas and Harrison Ford. The film opens with Blade Runner K (Ryan Gosling) travels to a protein farm where a replicant named Sapper (Dave Bautista) is working and K has been tasked by his superior Lieutenant Joshi (Robin Wright) to bring Sapper in only for a fight to break out. After dealing with Sapper and going over the area K finds the remains of a female replicant that leads K on a mysterious case that starts with K going to the Wallace Corporation, the current manufacturer of replicants. Overall this was an amazing film as it feels like a very organic sequel by having a similar aesthetic and continues to build from its predecessor with a great amount of connective tissue. The film does an amazing job in creating a sense of suspense for each scene and a great amount of emotion helps to make the films almost three hour length unnoticeable. There’s a great amount of character development and intrigue as K’s home life with his hologram girlfriend Joi (Ana de Armas) and personal history comes into question when he begins to investigate a strange case. While the return of Deckard (Harrison Ford) is a great addition to film as it keeps the connectivity of the original film and feels very organic to the direction the film itself takes with K’s own story. 9/10.

Harley Quinn: Red Meat Review

Finished reading Harley Quinn: Red Meat, continuing writers Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti second Harley Quinn ongoing series as Harley finds herself against a subterranean conquer, a group of cannibals and a girl from the future who has been inspired by Batman. The book opens with Harley and Harlem Harley taking a motorbike they've earned back home after a job when as group or humanoid insects smash through a window with a giant cocoon that has the subterranean villain named Zorcrom who plans on taking over the surface world.,The second story sees the return police chief Spoonsdale as he has come to meet with Harley in hopes that she can help him solve a case as multiple homeless people around the state of New York have been going missing as a group of cannibals that have been hired by the mayors office have been kidnapping them to feast upon. The final story of the book sees the end to Batman fan from the future, Devani Kage's story as she finds herself transported to the present in hopes to kill Harley and prevent her future from happening. Only for Harley to be save by someone close to her in a intriguing way. Overall this was a great book as it continues Harley’s adventures in Coney Island as the book puts focus on developing Harley as she meets with Power Girl and and gets a new job from the police chief Spoonsdale. While Red Tool also gets a nice amount of development that explore more of his origin, while also continuing to be one of the most hilarious ant interesting of Harley’s supporting cast. The structure of the book is interesting and works surprisingly well as writers Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti craft several overarching stories that criminate together extremely well. Additionally the great art of the book does a excellent job in differentiating between the multiple art styles and not feeling out of place during the transitions. 8/10.

Earth 2: Society: Life After Death Review

Finished reading Earth 2: Society: Life After Death, writer Dan Abnett bring an end to not only the series but the time with these characters which started at the beginning of DC's New 52 publishing line. The book opens with the heroes of Earth 2 finding themselves in a patch work world that looks like their original world as they find themselves under attack a by a group of shadowy fighters that look like the classic Sandman begin to attack the while the patch work world is slowly becoming the a new version of Earth 2. The final story sees the team having to finial adjusted to their new home as they continue to be heroes for a new world. Overall this was a great book as it brings a conclusion to the series amazing as each character get their own time to shine and their personal story arcs to a satisfying end with the book ending with enough room for DC to return to if they ever wish to. The reintroduction of the Ultra-Humanite is a great addition to the book as it helps to bring a more connective through line from earlier in the series to its conclusion along with a couple of surprising twist and returning characters. The art by Bruno Redondo and Vicente Cifuentes is great as it’s continues with the aesthetic of the series while also making the transition between the new more classic looking Earth 2 feel seamless thanks to the rest of the art team. Additionally the designs of the Sandmen looks amazing thanks to the way they look like creatures for a horror film while their in battle helps to give them a more supernatural. 8.5/10.

Goodbye Christopher Robin Flim Review

Finished watching Goodbye Christopher Robin, directed by Simon Curtis and starring Domhnall Gleeson, Margot Robbie, Will Tilston, Alex Lawther and Kelly Macdonald. The film opens in Second World War England as writer A. A. Mine (Domhnall Gleeson) receives a letter that gives him horrifying flashbacks to the First World War and how coming back home to his wife Daphne (Margot Robbie) was difficult. After the birth of their son Christopher Robin (Will Tilston and Alex Lawther) Daphne becomes distant as she doesn't what Christopher to good and fight another war just like his father. Years later Mine is still adjusting to life at home he decides to move to the countryside where he later finds himself spending time with his son when Daphne leaves him due to not writing anything and the nanny Olive (Kelly Macdonald) having to go spend time with her mother who has fallen ill. This is where Mine finds himself getting the inspiration to write Winnie-the-Pooh. Overall this was a great film as it dives into the life of writer A. A. Mine showing how he tried to deal with coming home after the First World War and where his inspiration for Winnie-the-Pooh came from and how that effected his family's life. The character interactions between the whole cast is great as the relationships between the characters feel very realistic which helps to make the more emotionally driven parts of the film have more of an impact thanks to how well the cast work together. 8/10.

Suicide Squad: Burning Down The House Review

Finished reading Suicide Squad: Burning Down The House, dealing with the aftermath of the events of Justice League vs Suicide Squad writer Rob Williams sends the team straight back into action as they try to hunt down escapee Rustam. The book opens with Amanda Waller try to find where original Suicide Squad member, Rustam is after trying to use her kids to get his revenge. Meanwhile the Suicide Squad are in Tibet trying to hunt down the villainous team, the Annihilation Brigade with no luck and after the mission the teams temporary handler Emilia Harcourt while Amanda is under investigation allows the team a night one release in New Orleans where a dunk Amanda Waller finds herself being assassinated be a mysterious figure. Soon after the team are set on their next mission to stop a prison break at Blackgate in Gotham a organised by Rustam. The second story within the book sees the return of classic Suicide Squad writer John Ostrander to the team he help to define as the Squad find themselves having to retrieve a recently kidnapped government official from the Netherlands before he can be but on trial for war crimes. Overall this was a good book as it continues the series by dealing with the ramifications of what's happening within in the series so far and the events of Justice League vs Suicide Squad with how these events have effected the missions that the team find themselves on. The art of the book is great as the transitions between John Romita Jr and Eddy Barrows work extremely with how the more action heavy parts of the book works hand in hand with the more character driven parts of the book that writer Rob Williams weaves together in a very intriguing way. While the for the art for the second story of the book does a great job in differentiating it self from the rest of the book while still feeling a part of the Suicide Squad as well thanks to how the story feels quite simple in design that's has a great story underneath. 7.5/10.